Jan. 18, 2013

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Tamales are highly popular at Iguana Roja.

From the stylish sign above the door, to the modern interior and the intriguing menu, it’s clear that something special is happening at Iguana Roja.

The new restaurant on the square in Ozark starts with traditional Mexican dishes and incorporates original ideas for flavors from throughout Latin America.

“We like to take the traditional, the typical or the familiar and make it just a little bit unfamiliar, owner Brian Taylor said.

This mindset begins with the basics, such as chips and salsa. Chips are seasoned with proprietary “fairy dust,” a formulation that appears in many dishes, imparting a deep, earthy flavor of cumin, annatto seed and other spices and chilis.

The creative spirit flourishes in drinks and desserts. The signature cocktail, the Iguana Roja, is a pineapple and chili pepper margarita.

The popular flan combines goat cheese and fresh cracked black pepper. “Sometimes it throws people off when they read it, but when the taste it, they’re pleasantly surprised,” Taylor said.

Here are tasting notes for six sampled dishes.

Nachos ($6): Ground beef, black beans, three cheeses, olives, jalapeño slices, house-made white queso, pico de gallo, sour cream and guacamole. The ground beef is seasoned with house-made chili powder. The cheeses are smoked Cheddar and two regional Mexican varieties, Cotija and Oaxaca. The quality ingredients and special seasonings elevate this appetizer well above the conventional gorge-fest that nachos often become. Take your time to enjoy all the flavors.

Chili relleno ($6): Beef, pork, mixed vegetables, quinoa, almonds, raisins the three-cheese blend — all within a poblano pepper — with jicama slaw, red pepper coulis and cilantro-lime crema. This item, also listed among the appetizers, is a work of art that could be your main course. The achiote braised pork is rubbed with a spice paste including annatto seed. The dish is a little sweet and carries a dash of heat. The raisins add an unexpected fruit dimension as well as sweetness, which also comes from the coulis. The pepper is baked, not dipped and fried, which creates a distinctive texture unlike typical chili rellenos. The chili rests on a bed of jicama slaw, which adds crunch and bright flavor.

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Ground beef burrito ($8): With Cuban black beans, caramelized onions, roasted poblano peppers, white rice and the three-cheese blend. Once again, the earthy fairy dust transforms the dish, and the roasted poblanos add a slightly smoky touch. The caramelized onions lend a smooth and enriching influence. All burritos have these special peppers and onions.

Funky flan ($5): How can black pepper enhance a sweet dish? It just does. It’s easier to grasp that the thick and rich texture of goat cheese would make wonderful custard, and it does. The ingredients do all the work, chef Jeremy Smith suggested. “We don’t add any extra sauce,” he said. “After we heat each one of them and we pop them out of the mold, they just sauce themselves.”